Ore-separator



M KRAUT.

ORE SEPARATOR. APPLICAYT'IUON FILED MAY 26.. m1.

Pafgnted Nov. 25, 1919;

a All 355555; I ES.

a Pum ce z srars ORE-SEPARATOR.

Specification-of Letters Patent. Patented Nov, 25, 1919 Application filed May 26, '1917. Serial No. 171,085.

.To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MAX KRAUT, a citizen of-the United States, residing in the city and county of Los Angeles, State of California, have invented an Improvement in v Ore-Separators, of which the following is a specification. v

My present invention relates to ore separating machines working by the well-known flotation method of operation.

It relates particularly to improvements upon a machine which is patented to me and F. B. Kollberg in Letters Patent No. 1,174,737, issued March 7, 1916. That machine shows the cylindrical revoluble member which I employ and other features of'my present invention, which will be learned from the description contained in the Letters Patent referred to; but a characteristic feature of it and one which I have found in practice to be objectionable for several reasons is a froth collecting chamber disposed along the side of the machine for its entire length.

In my present machine, however, I dispense with this chamber, and substitute for it a froth-collecting device m'ounted upon the top of a casing, preferably cylindrical, containing a revoluble agitating member, substantially like the one in the patent referred to. There are details of this frothcollecting device which I will describe later;

' but it will be seen that by the disposition of'it which I have made, I reduce the floor space necessary foreach machine by nearly one-half without increasing the headroom required more than a few inches. In the design of a practical machine which I have here disclosed, it is only about'six inches. While that'is a. great advantage, a still greater advantage is that by the position of the froth-collecting device, assisted to a certain extent by its construction, I increase the efliciency of the machine by about 50%,

as far as I can tell from the tests which I gap to the present time. This increase of e ciency is not attended by any increased consumption of power; although that would not be of much importance if the increased output could be obtained from the smaller number of machines needed, but it nevertheless afltects the total'of operating costs favorably. The disposition of the froth-collecting device in the way referred to insures that no part of the metal will be returned to the pulp after it has been separated therefrom, and at no features of the invention may be adopted in whole, or-in part, as maybe desire}.

The accompanying drawings show an embodiment of my invention. Therein:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section upon the line 11 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section upon the line 2-2 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is an end'elevation looking to the right in F ig.- l.

Fig. 4: iS a detail.

In all of the drawings, A is a case, preferably cylindrical,,which may be constructed in any desired manner customary in the art, although I have here shown it as made of iron orsteel, bolted and riveted in the usual way, like the construction of steam boilers, or of other mining machinery. The case is formed on the top with a longitudinal extension consisting of the side walls A A and the flanges A -A which may be hinged as shown, or may be fixed in position. This upward extension, located at the top of the periphery, constitutes the frothcollecting device, which I have called a collector, or froth-chamber, these terms being common in the art. By hinging the flanges A A I have been able to raise one side or the other of the chamber to a greater height, and thus to compel the froth to be discharged upon one side only, ifthat be desired. Ordinarily,-it will be found best to loo totwo pounds per ton, depending ducts are of substantial size.

upon conditions with which mining operators are familiar, and which need not be stated.

Mounted upon a shaft H, of sufficient diameter to prevent flexure, are spiders D D which carry a cylindrical covering 0 wooden :blocks 1) having mounted upon their outer periphery riflles d, and which are perforated at desired intervals with holes al At each end of the revoluble member is'a conical air-duct E by which the air has access to its interior; it will be observed that the The shaft is supported in bearings H H and is shown as driven by a pulley H but obviously any other means, such as an electric motor, may

be used to drive the machine.

The construction of the revoluble member is sufliciently indicated in the prior patent to me and Kollberg, to which I have already madereference, and will not be-herein further described.

At each end of the machine there are headers I-I, which constitute the main support thereof, and at the upper end of the videdat that-end of the machine which commachine opposite the feed pipe B is a -tail-' ing pipe G. A tank or receptacle Gr is prober; Within the tank is a partition G the effect of which is to keep the frothfrom flowing out into the tailings pipe, while permitting the tailings to pass thereinto freely.

In the froth-collecting device are disposed longitudinal partitions C and transverse par-v titions C C The longitudinal partitions extend throughout the whole length of the froth-collecting device, and they are disposed so as to incline, at their uppersides, toward the .periphery of the revoluble'memher where it enters between the side walls A A1. X The partitions are shown as substan- 1 tially parallel; but it is of importance that these should be to a certain extent adjustable.-

so as to produce the best effect with the particular mixture upon which the machine 1s working. In general theadjustment of the .partitions should leave them tilting toward the entering side of the chamber, and I have found no conditions under whichit is desirable that they should pass the vertical; but

" I do not. mean to exclude such an adjust- :ment, if it shall be' found best in the operation of the machine on any particular pulp; and this disposition of thempermits them to catch the spray carrying the pulp; the air- 1 bubbles then find their way upward into the froth-collecting tank or chamber While the tailings accumulate and may fall back into the cylinder'to a certain extent, but they are gradually worked along in the bottom of the collector as the machine operates, until they at the tailings pipe (in;

finally flow into the tank G and leave it Fig. 4 shows in detail upon a somewhat larger scale a way of adjustingthe partitions C. These are shown mounted upon pins at c and connected together at one end by a lever C connected to a hand-lever C mounted in 'a stand C. When it is desired to adjust the partitions simultaneously, the lever C may be moved and this will be effected; any common form of friction device, not shown, may be employed with the individually adjustable, which is sometimes desirable. It will be observed that the air ducts E E allow a complete communication with the atmosphere and this dispenses entirely with the pipes formerly employedto bring air into the pulp in what was a separate spray-' ing chamber, as shown in our former-patent. The air is introduced not so much by centrifugal force, although there may be a slight amount of that, as by the suction produced by the discharge of the pulp from between the periphery of the revoluble member and the wall of the drum' A; as the liquid pulp passes along, there is a con siderable suction at all points, which is greatest near the top of the body of liquid 1 in the drum just where the spray enters between the side walls A A of the froth-collector.

The operation of my mproved machine will be apparent to those familiar with the flotation process, as now well known in this art. The pulp'is fed into the ipe B at such a rate as the machine can ta e care of, the revoluble member being rotated at about 200 R. P. M. in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 2. The pulp passes'around to the right, until it reaches the froth-collector chamber, and then passes up between the partitions C O, grad- .ually working along to the tank G passing under'the wall G ,.the froth flowing over the flanges A A into the launders as it accumulates, and being prevented by the partition G from passing into vthe tailings pipe,

to any substantial extent; the tailings, how-' ever, pass into the pipe and-are carried away in the usual. manner.

It will be seen that the machine embraces a number of advantages over any with which I am acquainted. The froth-collecting device may discharge at either side, or both sides atwill. The froth has substantially no downward motion, and does not move at any time against the stream. of

pulp; after'th e bubbles are formed until the froth reaches the collector, it passes u ward with the motion of the fluid; the disery position of the longitudinal divisions of the froth-collector greatly assists the formation of the froth and gives it ample opportunity to rise to the top of the stream of pulp; the longitudinal divisions act as eflicient skimmers; the ducts E provide free communication between the atmosphere and.

the inside of the revolving drum, dispensing altogether with the spraying chamber and air-pipes of former constructions; the power required is certainly no greater, and is probably less than any former construction; and the efliciency greatly increased, while the floor space manded is substantially diminished.

I claim as my invention:

1. In an ore-separator working by tation process, a horizontal drum, a zontal revoluble member therein, and revoluble members being so related as to convert the pulp fed to the drum into spray and deliver the 5 my out of the drum", an open bottomed f oth separating chamber su erposedo'n the drum in position to recelve the spraydirectly as it is projected from the revoluble member and adapted to retain a froth-separating-body of pulp.

2. In an ore-separator operating by the flotation process, a horizontal drum, a horizontal revoluble member therein, the drum and revoluble member being so related as to convert the pulp'fed to the drum into spray horiand deliver the spray out of the drum, rneans for rotating the member, a connection from the atmosphere to the inside of the member, means forfeeding a mixture of ore, water and oil to the bottom of the drum, and an open bottomed froth separating chamber superposed on the drum 3. In. an ore-separator operating by the flotation process, a horizontal drum, a horizontal revoluble member therein the periphof which is closely adjacent to the drum and is provided with perforations, a connection from the atmosphere to the inside of the revoluble member, the drum and member being so related as to convert the pulp fed to the drum into spray and deliver the spray out of the drum, means for supplying pulp to the drum, an open-bottomed froth-separating chamber superposed on the drum and arran ed to receive the spray projected there rom, and partitions in the froth-separating chamber in the path of the spray. 4. In an ore-separator operating .by the flotation process, a substantially cylindrical therein adapted to spray and deliver the spray out of the chamof the machine is the drum the spray,

horizontal chamber, a revoluble member convert the pulp into there being perforations in the periphery of the revoluble member and a connection from the atmosphere to the inside thereof, means for rotating the revoluble member, means for supplying pulp, a froth-separator having open connection with the chamber and arranged to receive ber,

means for adjusting the partitions to different angles of incidence with the spray entering the frothseparator. i

5'. In apparatus for separating ore by the flotation process, means means for spraying the pulp and projecting the spray, a froth-separator arranged to receivethe spray as projected and provided with partitions, and means for adjusting the partitions to different angles of incidence with the spray enteringthe separator.

6. In apparatus for separating ore bythe flotation process, means for. feeding pulp, means for spraying the pulp and projecting a froth-separator arranged to receive the spray as projected and provided with partitions, and means for adjusting the partitions individually to different angles of incidence with the spray entering the frothseparator.

7. In apparatus for separating ore by the flotation process, means for feeding pulp, means for spraying the pulp and projecting the spray, a froth-separator arranged to receive the spray as projected and provided with partitions, and means for adjusting the partitions to different angles of incidence with the spray enteilng the separator, the partitions arranged at an angle greater than a right-angle with; the spray entering the froth-separator.

8. In apparatus flotation process,

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification this 19thgday of May,1 917.

MAX KRAUT.

the spray directly as it is pro ected out of the chamber, "the separator containing partitions, and

for feeding pulp, 

